Although natural terrestrial ecosystems have sequestered ~25% of anthropogenic CO2 emissions, the long-term sustainability of this key ecosystem service is under question. Forests have traditionally been viewed as robust carbon (C) sinks; however, extreme heat-waves, drought and wildfire have increased tree mortality, particularly in widespread semi-arid regions, which account for ~41% of Earth's land surface. Using a set of modeling experiments, we show that California grasslands are a more resilient C sink than forests in response to 21st century changes in climate, with implications for designing climate-smart Cap and Trade offset policies.
Original Source [2]
Links:
[1] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/feature-article/grasslands-may-be-more-reliable-carbon-sinks-forests-california
[2] http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/aacb39/meta
[3] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/author/pawlok-dass
[4] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/author/benjamin-z-houlton-0
[5] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/author/yingping-wang-et-al
[6] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/journal/environmental-research-letters
[7] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/carbon-sinks
[8] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/grasslands
[9] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/forests
[10] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/california
[11] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/carbon-sequestration
[12] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/climate-change